Letters to THE EDITOR

Don’t Live in a Glass House

After a pretty long period of 15 years of Congress rule, the rein of administration at Dispur went to the BJP-led NDA. The people of the State, after the swearing-in ceremony, were quite euphoric, thinking that cash-crunch and corruption plaguing the Congress regime would be stopped once for all. News was doing the rounds at that point of time, both in the electronic and the print media, that the Congress had totally emptied the State exchequer. By that time the Central exchequer emptied by the Congress had not only been replenished but also, in respect of augmentation of the much needed foreign-exchange, it had escalated to an unprecedented new height. Naturally, people had every reason to feel euphoric.

But by degrees, the people of Assam started realizing the cruel truth when they noticed that the special status hitherto enjoyed by Assam had been curtailed. Thereafter, the Centre started maintaining a close-fisted attitude towards the State, the proof of which we could find in ample measure during the last floods. That apart, Parimal Shukla Baidya, the erstwhile PWD Minister, once candidly conceded that the works of repairing of the deplorable roads could not be undertaken as the department severely suffered from fund crunch. The much-hyped dredgers arrived but these remained useless in Guwahati. Construction of four-lane roads has proceeded like a slow coach. It is reported in a section of the press that more than Rs 5,000 crore is yet to be paid to Assam by the Central government by way of royalty of crude oil.

It looks very odd when our Chief Minister visits Delhi to meet the BJP high command seeking funds. The proclamation of our Finance minister that we have sufficient funds in our exchequer sounds hollow. It is not to suggest that the BJP-led government in Assam is a total failure. Some of those who plundered and embezzled government funds during the Congress regime are in jail. Some more are awaiting their turn to go to jail. But it appears now the State government too has started to live in a glass house, kudos to the Minister of Panchayat and Rural Development. Once vulnerable points are noticed, there is every possibility of its widening to plague the entire State.

Ashok Bordoloi,

Dibrugarh.

RSS Phobia?

The appropriate meaning of the word ‘phobia’, according to English dictionary, is ‘morbid fear’. If someone at the current juncture is asked to make a sentence with the above-quoted word, the perfect answer would be: “Rahul Gandhi is suffering from RSS phobia.” The latest accusation levelled by the Gandhi dynasty scion on the RSS in regards to the organization’s involvement in the recent Tuticorn massacre simply nails the fear of Rahul Gandhi towards the RSS. The president of the Congress has the habit of accusing people in the opposition without verifying facts and figures. Any sensible Indian would shudder to think the fortune of the nation if by any remote chance Rahul Gandhi is made Prime Minister for the nation.

The oldest political party of the country should give a serious thought in regards to projecting Rahul Gandhi as a prospective prime ministerial candidate for the next general elections due in 2019. His 24×7 nightmarish phobia about the RSS would lead the century-old party to nowhere.

Joel Daimary,

Boko.